We EAT

Having
time on your hands is rare when you have a full house. 2gether we eat is about
bringing your tribe together to enjoy a meal, even if it means preparing that
meal with one free hand and someone pulling at your leg. Not only do I hope to offer delicious, easy
to prepare recipes, but I’ll also show you how getting your kids involved in
the process can make the meal that much more rewarding for you and those eating
it.

My little guy has had some
fussy eating spells, so I wanted to create something fun that he, and his older
brother, would enjoy making with me as well as eating 2gether. Due to my ethnic
background, I always have certain ingredients on hand: yogurt, garlic, feta,
and mint, just to name a few. This time around, I started dinner around 2pm so
they could come home and help me with the Tzatziki. I don't have my youngest
around ground meat yet, for obvious reasons, so this seemed to be the perfect
plan. It is okay to make the meat mixture for the muffins ahead of time the
morning of or even the day before.

Now for the fun part.

Once the kids came home
from school, I started prepping the baby broccoli (recipe to come soon) at the
counter and both boys pulled up their mini chairs asking if they can help. It
happens every night, so I always have some idea in my head of how they can be
involved. This time we made the "dip" for the muffins. BTW- they were
thrilled we were having muffins! After the boys washed their hands, Nolan added
the pre-measured water to the yogurt that Jackson was stirring. After we agreed
we had the right consistency, Jackson started using his plastic knife to chop
the cukes as Nolan and I added the seasoning. Jackson did an awesome job
chopping the cukes but I gave them a once over with the knife to make sure they
were finely chopped. He got the honor of adding the cukes to the yogurt/water
mixture. We mixed and cheered that we had our dip. Oh wait, I almost forgot,
the taste test. After we agreed it was good but needed more salt, they went off
to set the table as I got the rest of the meal put together.

Mediterranean Meatloaf
Muffins:

1 ½ lbs meat (ground
chicken, turkey or lamb)

1/2 cup crumbled feta
cheese

1 cup thawed chopped
spinach

3 Tbs. chopped parsley

1/2 cup plain bread crumbs

1 egg

1 ½ tsp onion powder

1 ½ tsp garlic powder

Salt, pepper, cayenne
pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients
together is a large bowl. Shape into palm sized balls and place in greased
muffin tin. Place in a preheated 375 degree oven for 30-35 minutes or 25
minutes if using lamb. Serve with tzatziki frosting or dipping sauce. Recipe to
follow.

Tzatziki:

2 cups Greek yogurt

1/2 cup water (omit if you
want frosting for muffins)

1-2 small English cukes
finely chopped

1 clove garlic crushed
(use 1 tsp powder for picky eaters)

1 Tbs ground mint

Salt to taste

Whip yogurt and water
together until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and let sit for an hour to
allow flavors to meld. Serve with just about anything!